Observations on the two judicial interpretations for arbitration promulgated by the Supreme People's Court

On December 26, 2017, the Supreme People's Court promulgated the Provisions on Several Issues Concerning the Trial of Arbitration-related Judicial Review Cases (关于审理仲裁司法审查案件若干问题的规定) (Judicial Review Interpretation) and the Provisions Relevant to Issues of Referring Arbitration-related Judicial Review Cases for Review (关于仲裁司法审查案件报核问题的有关规定) (Referral Interpretation). These two judicial interpretations can be described as legislating for the largest, most extensive and broadest reform of the PRC arbitration system since the promulgation of the Supreme People's Court, Interpretation on Several Issues Concerning the Application of the (最高人民法院关于适用＜中华人民共和国仲裁法＞若干问题的解释) in 2006, and this has naturally raised great concerns from the public. Here, the author introduces selected parts of the two judicial interpretations in order to reveal the changes and influences they will have on China's arbitration system.